A Lost Society
by ElunaX12
Summary: A very strange girl has entered the military, and Edward intends to solve the mysteries that surround her. Soon, he begins to question things, both about her, and about himself. Oh, and he gets turned into an animal. DEAD STORY.
1. Welcome to the Military

Messing with alchemy is fun. Anyways, enjoy the story!

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"Hey, who's that?" Ed asked, looking down the table to what looked to be a woman, eating on her own. "Is she an alchemist?"

"I know her name is Eluna, but, well, to tell you the truth, I don't know what she is," Hughes said, following Ed's gaze to the blonde. "She has the watch, I know, but I've never seen her perform any actual alchemy. Nor has anyone else, for that matter."

"So how'd she pass the examination?"

"She didn't have to take it. Not yet, at least; she's the one who's taking it today. Apparently, she showed up around here without warning, and was just given the watch for no reason. She was even given a name -- something along the lines of the Shifting Alchemist -- but I have no idea what that means. I do know, however, that her name is Eluna, and that she's not all that friendly." Hughes looked up to see the blonde teen already starting to walk over to the newcomer. The older man sighed. "And, of course, you have to go and stick your nose in it..."

As Ed approached, the woman glanced up, and he was immediately struck by two things: One was that she actually seemed to be around his age, and the second was her eyes. The grey-blue pierced into the gold, their feral look entrancing Ed, and for a moment he couldn't move, pinned down by Eluna's emotionless gaze. He was drawn up from their hypnotic depths when the woman spoke, her voice quiet, and as empty of emotion as her exotic eyes.

"Yes?"

"Oh, I, uh," Ed blubbered uncharacteristically for a moment, at a loss for words. When he composed himself, he kept his tone casual. "So, you're a State Alchemist, huh?"

"I suppose you could call me that, yes," the woman responded, turning back to her meal and taking a bite of bread as Ed sat down next to her. "What's it to you?"

"Well, I was just wondering what kind of alchemy you do?" he asked, watching her carefully, should she suddenly rear up and smack his face. She didn't.

"I... don't do any, at least not of the sort that people consider normal," she murmured, shaking her head. Ed's interest piqued.

"So how'd you get to be what you are now?"

"It's not that I wanted to be a State Alchemist, but when I came here, somebody named Roy had heard about some things that I had done in years prior, and he gave me one of these watches and told me to start calling myself a State Alchemist. I went along with it, but I didn't know that I was being signed up for the _military_."

"Oh, I see. So he's making you take the examination today instead, huh? What do you have to do?" So, Roy's managed to sneak someone else into the military, Ed thought irritably.

"Well, he said that I'd be fighting someone, but he hasn't told me who yet... Everyone seems really excited about it, but I just don't understand why." She shook her head, sighing softly. "I really hate to fight, actually."

"I fought someone once for an examination," Ed said with an almost playful grin. "I actually fought Roy himself. Oh, boy did we make a mess of the parade grounds!" "Parade grounds? That's where I'm going to be fighti--" Before Eluna could finish, the fuehrer entered the mess hall, informing everyone to assemble on the parade grounds.

Shuffling out with the rest of the personnel, Ed and Eluna didn't speak to each other as they came out to the grounds, repaired since Ed and Roy's battle some time ago. Hughes, of course, took up the position of the microphone, calling Eluna to present herself. A few wolf whistles were heard among the crowd, but most remained silent, wary about this unexplained newcomer. Then, Ed was called forward.

_Oh no_, Ed thought as he walked to the other side of the grounds, opposite of Eluna. _I really don't want to hurt her... I guess I'll just have to go easy on the poor girl._

"Ready, combatants?!" Hughes asked, before turning and running. "BEGIN!"

Ed had learned since last time to attack at first call. No hesitations. Clapping his hands to form his automail into a blade(though he kept it dulled), Ed rushed forward, but he found that there was no woman. Instead, there was an ivory wolf in her place, a snarl on its face, and the same gray-blue eyes giving Ed the stare down. All at once, the parade grounds stilled. Nobody even breathed. What had just happened? Where did Eluna go? No way was she the wolf! That wasn't possible! Even Ed had stopped in his tracks, puzzled by the idea. Eluna wasn't.

Pouncing at the defenseless boy, Eluna's teeth caught onto Ed's flesh arm, and he cried out when he felt the skin break and the blood begin to flow. He swiped his blade at her as she came down, but she was too fast for him, already backing away and preparing another surge forward. This time, though, Ed acted first, lunging at her with his blade. Quickly dodging to the side, Eluna's teeth snapped for his leg, but grated against metal instead, and Ed grinned. Pivoting quickly, he kicked her square in the chest, sending her flying upwards. Expecting for her to go soaring out of the ring, Ed was deeply disappointed when again the impossible happened. Eluna changed. In what appeared to be quite a painful process, with muscles tearing and bones popping, the wolf morphed instead to become a serpent-like dragon, its doggish head already plastered with a snarl.

Like a bolt of lightning, the dragon came speeding back down at him, claws extended. Only narrowly avoiding being caged beneath her giant paw, Ed swiped his blade across her muzzle, making a small, but still irritating gash. Growling low with annoyance, the dragon snapped at him viciously, and Ed found himself having to do some amazing acrobatics just to keep out of those terrifying jaws. Still, though, it wasn't enough, and there was a metallic crunch as Ed's automail leg became caught between her teeth. It was then he realized that she'd actually been aiming for that leg, not because she wanted to destroy it, but because she didn't want to accidentally bite off one of his real ligaments. This fight could have ended much longer ago, had Eluna wanted to, but she'd chosen to not hurt Ed too badly. In fact, his metal leg wasn't even damaged that badly, and the crunch had only been from her other teeth clicking together.

That thought didn't help Ed at the moment, though, and before he knew it, he was being hoisted up by his leg, displayed like a rag doll for the rest of the personnel. Had the circumstances not been what they were, there probably would have been rounds of laughter going about at that moment, but instead a deathly quiet had settled in. Awe and fear stricken eyes stared in disbelief at the beast that gently lowered Ed back to the ground, before changing back into its own original form. Eluna stood just as silent as the rest, her head held down, and Ed could see tears beginning to form in her eyes. Now he knew why she didn't like fighting, at least not in public. That definitely wasn't alchemy. Besides the fact that there had been no circle, nor had there been a clapping of hands as Ed did, she'd changed her very being. That was more along the lines of a homunculus, but she seemed so gentle, so quiet, and she had feelings. She had tears. Ed could see them plainly.

"So, my assumptions were right," Roy said, jolting everyone back to reality. The Colonel stepped forward, his eyes narrowed. "The one successful attempt at human transmutation, and I've brought you out of hiding."

"No way!" someone in the crowd blurted. "She disappeared in the blast that destroyed the rest of the town!"

"So the reports said, but no one could confirm it," Roy said, walking over towards Eluna and Ed, neither of whom having moved. "As far as we knew, she could have been wandering in the streets, and we would have never noticed."

"But that's impossible," Ed gasped, staring at Roy in disbelief. "Equivalent trade doesn't permit--"

"There was a trade," Roy said. "As the records of the town went, a child died to sickness, but there was no burial ceremony. Two days later, the child was alive and well again, but her parents had disappeared. It was obvious that they'd traded themselves for her. Exactly how they managed to do this, though, is still a mystery, so we will have to perform a few examinations on her."

"Examination? She killed military personnel! She destroyed an entire town! From what the stories tell, she could kill us all right now without a thought!" protested another from the crowd. Everyone seemed to shift back a step.

"I... I never... wanted to..." Eluna choked, and she stared at her hands for a long moment. "S-... something... happened... I don't know what..." Without warning, she dropped to her knees, face buried into gloved hands, sobbing miserably. "What the hell did I do!? What the freaking hell!? Why is it me that God chose to hate to hell and back!? What the hell!?" she screamed between sobs, her body trembling. "Why, damnit, why!?"

"If it makes you feel any better, you're a great intrigue to science. If you could just come with me, things will be better," Roy said reassuringly, placing a hand on her shoulder. Eluna would have none of it.

Jerking away from his hand, she smacked him sharply on the cheek, making him pause in surprise. Standing up and backing away, Eluna turned suddenly and bolted, changing her shape mid-stride to that of a horse, leaping clean over the wall of people that the military opposed her with, and vanishing from sight. Most stood with their jaws hanging open, their eyes wide, staring blankly off into the direction the mare had disappeared. Ed was the first to come out of this stupor, and the first thing he did was run right after her. Nobody had enough of a brain to stop him at the moment, so he was free to begin tracking her down.

With a good bit of asking around town, he found that she'd managed to flee well out of the city and into the country, and that was where he found her. Collapsed over beneath a tree, Eluna lay in silence, staring up through the leaves and branches at the sky, her face emotionless. She glanced over at Ed when he approached, and sighed softly.

"I suppose the military sent you to cart me back over there?" she asked irritably. "Or am I just so interesting that you want to perform tests on me yourself?"

Ed sat down next to her, remaining in silence as he did so. Of course, when he did speak, his voice was quite serious. "What was it like, being in the Door?"

Jolting up into a sitting position, Eluna stared at him in disbelief, looking like she wanted to hit him and cry at the same time. Still, Ed only gave her the same expression, and eventually she sighed, turning her face away towards the ground.

"It's... difficult to describe," she murmured. "I guess it's a bit like... I don't know. It's like floating in water, but there's no wetness, and there are others around. Some of them looked happy, others miserable. None of them really paid attention to me, though. But I saw entire families, speaking gibberish to each other. It was... lonely."

"And when you were being pulled back out, into this world?" Ed persisted.

"T-the door opened, and I saw two people outside. Th-they looked l-like my p-parents, a-and I could feel m-myself being pushed out, and I p-passed the other two. Th-they s-smiled, a-and w-waved, and all of a s-sudden, I w-was back here, b-but my p-parents... th-they..." She didn't seem to be able to form the last word, tears already beginning to form in her eyes.

"Vanished?" Ed offered quietly, and Eluna sobbed softly in response, hand covering her mouth to try and muffle the sound. "So then..." he continued, suddenly reaching out and jerking her arm, forcing her to look at him. "What the hell are you!? A homunculi, human, what!?"

"What makes you think I'd know!?" she screamed at him, and he paused, staring at her grief stricken eyes. "Just because I'm the _thing_ that came out from the Door, you think I know everything!?"

"Did the Door give you the power to change?" Ed pressed, gripping her arm tighter. "Did the Door give you that ability?"

"... No," Eluna whispered, looking down again, even though the hold on her arm was almost painful. "Everyone where I grew up had the ability. We all have the power to change ourselves into creatures. Most others, except in our society, have forgotten. Even you could change, if you knew how."

"What?" Ed breathed, in a state of utter shock. "How the hell is that possible?! The laws of alchemy don't--"

"The laws of alchemy are lies, at least when it comes to that." She looked up at him again, her expression daring him to contradict her. "As intelligence of alchemy grew, people began to abandon the old ways. Now it's known as Body Alchemy, and it's considered taboo, even though it's harmless if you do it properly. But people are fools. Our ways were outlawed, and if you performed any, you'd be sentenced to an examination, and then death. It's the same everywhere in this world. As alchemy took over, the ways of Changing died out. My society had to go into hiding, so as to prevent persecution."

"But... why?" Ed whispered, his hand loosening. "And, if equivalent exchange means nothing, then why did your parents..."

"Bringing someone back from the dead is _different_," she growled, her hand becoming a fist. "Changing a living body doesn't disrupt the very meaning of life. All creatures are made of the same basic components, give or take, and arranged in different ways. To take back a life, and not suffer from it would destroy all of time, and make death itself worthless. If you want to bring someone back, you need either their original body or a new one, and then you need someone else to trade off, otherwise who knows what sort of chaos could be unleashed onto the world. People would be practically rising from the dead, without consequence. The world would lose no lives."

"So... then... what are homunculi?" Ed asked, staring at her in disbelief. "And why did both of your parents get sacrificed?"

"Homunculi are created when people realize that they aren't willing to make the ultimate sacrifice of theirs, or somebody else's life. Instead, they only lose parts of themselves, which are what homunculi grow from. As for my parents..." She paused, sucking in a breath. "The Door is greedy, and both of my parents were willing."

Slowly releasing Eluna's arm, Ed's mouth hung open slightly, and he stared at the girl blankly. Could she be trusted? What would she know? Did she really come from beyond the gate? And what about the "hidden society" she came from? Could it really have existed?

"Tell me, then," he said hesitantly, "how exactly is it that you're able to change? Is it simply a matter of rearranging yourself into whatever you want to be?"

"No," she responded, quietly rubbing at the spot where he'd held her so tightly. "To obtain the shape of another being, you need more than just your own body. If you want to become something larger, for instance, you need more material."

"So then where do you get it?!" Ed was starting to get irritated with the lack of complete answers.

"You need a soul, from whatever creature it is you want to duplicate. Every person is unique, because only certain animal souls can bond to certain people. Few are able to master more than two or three animals. The souls that you obtain are attachments to your own, and if you have too many, they will override your true being, take you over, and you will be lost. It's probably the main reason as to why people abandoned the old ways. Their powers were always limited, and as it is with us humans, we want more."

"Souls? How can you take souls? And what's compatibility got to do with all of this?" Ed questioned further, grabbing her shoulder this time.

"Most animals have a lesser soul than our own," Eluna explained patiently, looking up at Ed. "When an animal dies, there is a time just before it enters the gate. During this period, someone can snatch it back, and replace that soul with a part of their own. As long as they are of the same amount, the Door doesn't know any better. Then, to replace the bit that they lost, the person can simply add on the animal's soul to their own, and gain the ability to take on its living form."

"Then what about the dragon?" Something about that part didn't seem right. "Don't they have a higher soul? And if so, then how did you manage to obtain it?"

"Ah," Eluna said, shrugging slightly. "That's what got me killed. Obtaining a soul can be tricky at times, depending on what you manage to get. Sometimes, the sacrifice is trivial, and other times more so. I'd already managed to attain three other souls by that time, and I was trying to get a fourth. I had no idea that a dragon would be waiting for me. Once the process is started, you cannot reverse it, and so what was left of my own soul was sacrificed for the dragon. Afterwards, my parents took my soul back from the door in exchange for their own, and I was left with the four forms I have now."

"You say it like it doesn't even matter," Ed growled. "As if the lives of your parents is nothing! That your dieing was just a walk in the park!"

"I never said that!" Eluna snapped, glaring at him. "I'd never meant to get myself or my parents killed, it was just how it turned out. Dragons are rare and powerful creatures indeed but their deaths are just as, if not even more unusual, though the time between their dieing and then being sent beyond the Door is longer than most. If I'd waited an extra day, things may not have turned out as they did."

Ed stared at her for a long while, before sighing. "How long does the process of obtaining a soul take?"

"It varies, both from person to person, and depending on the soul that is offered. If you fail to find a soul that is compatible, then the process will end sooner than when you manage to find one." Eluna gave him a stern look. "You aren't going to try it, are you?"

"Not unless you show me exactly how," he responded, his tone firm.

Sighing, Eluna shook her head at him. "It's painful, you know. More painful than having automail put on. Your soul rips, tears, and reforms, as does your entire body."

"I don't care," Ed growled, digging his human fingers into her shoulders. "If I don't experience it for myself, I'll never believe you."

Rolling her eyes, Eluna stood up slowly, brushing his hand off her shoulder with a gentle touch. "Fine, I'll guide you through it, but as soon as it really starts, you're on your own. Understood?"

Ed nodded, and Eluna had him stand up, and move off into the middle of the field. With her heel, she began drawing a large, and very complex alchemic circle, of the sorts Ed had never seen before. Bewildered, Ed stood in silence, and before long, he found himself standing in the very center of it. With a final swipe, she completed it, and turned to look at him.

"If you really want to go on, just activate the circle like you would any other," Eluna said, before retreating outside of the perimeter. "If you feel pain, don't let it overcome you."

Nodding slowly, Ed clapped his hands, and slammed down onto the grass. In a blinding flash of blue, Ed's vision was clouded, and he found himself in front of the Door. What looked to be a wolf stood in front of him, facing the Door. It turned around slowly to look at him, and suddenly lurched forward, pouncing at him. Intense pain overcame Ed, and it felt like he was being ripped in two. In the next moment, the feeling changed, and all of his bones were breaking. Everything was reforming, even his automail. The last thing he caught sight of was what looked like a copy of himself walking into the Door, but smaller, before he lost consciousness.

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What will Ed be!? Will something go terribly wrong!? Is this story compete idiocy!? Express your opinions in a review!(No, really).


	2. What Is This?

I don't have much to say up here, so let's just get on with it!

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"Nngh..." Ed grumbled, creaking an eye open, Eluna's face greeting him. "What the..." Things felt different. He felt longer, and like he had one extra appendage.

"About time," Eluna said, patting his head. "I was getting a bit worried when you passed out."

"Wh... What just happened?" Ed whined, trying to stand up, but his legs wouldn't cooperate. Then, he remembered. "Eluna, what the hell am I!?" "Don't try moving so soon," Eluna advised, pushing him gently back down onto the grass. "Your new wolf body needs some time to adapt."

"Wolf?" Twitching his tail to make sure that it was actually there, Ed yelped with surprise. He'd done it! He'd changed! But... now... "Hey, Eluna, how do I change back?"

"To change back, all you have to do it concentrate on being human again. By thinking about whatever form you want to be, you'll change to that particular shape."

Nodding, Ed closed his eyes again, and more overwhelming pain gripped him. He could feel his bones popping, snapping, the muscles stretching, automail creaking back into shape. Eventually, after much whimpering, he was back to normal, and sat up. He stretched his arms and legs to make sure everything function, nodded to himself, and then looked over at Eluna, who had stood, and was staring off into the distance, body stiff. Getting up and going over to her, Ed placed a questioning hand on her shoulder, to find that she was shaking.

"Th-they're here," Eluna whispered, her entire body tensing as she spoke.

Off in the distance, Ed could see the military approaching. All the higher-ups were there, including Mustang. Behind them, a large, trundling vehicle rolled along, looking to be made of solid metal, and Ed knew it was for containing all of Eluna's forms. A look of horror flashed across Eluna's face, and she turned, sprinting away, going at an incredible pace, black cloak flourishing behind her. Without thinking, Ed went after her, but found that he just couldn't keep up. At least, not in this form...

Though he dreaded the pain that would come, Ed shifted to his new, wolfish form, charging after Eluna. His legs were still stiff, even those of his automail. Still, now he was able to keep pace with the girl as she fled from the ones who'd come to capture her. Not far ahead, a wall of trees began, and Eluna aimed for it, knowing that it would be the only way she could escape. Unfortunately, the military was going to do all they could to make sure she wouldn't make it. It started with one of Mustang's signature marks, an explosion erupting behind them, and throwing the two escapees forward.

Ed was dazed, but a quick and forceful tug on his scruff from Eluna brought him up, and he was on his feet again in a moment, bolting after the white figure that had replaced Eluna. Like gold and silver bullets, the two wolves escaped into the trees, plunging into the green and disappearing from the sight of the military. Still, they kept running, until the last sounds of human activity had died away, the shouts and curses had gone, and the sounds of nature enveloped them. Ed flopped over in a clearing, panting heavily, listening to the birds chirping around him, and noticed how much more acute his hearing had become. Eluna stood not too far away, sitting quietly, panting softly, her head hung low. Ed blinked at her, and stood slowly, moving over towards her. Looking up, Eluna gave him a questioning look, tilting her head at him slightly. She yelped when he tackled her, forcing her onto her back, and she stared up at him, growling a warning.

Ed didn't know what was wrong with him. Something about Eluna just seemed different now. Something in him told him to do this, something animalistic. It drove him to pin her, even though she struggled, snarled and snapped in protest. In fact, it took her shifting to that of a human and physically throwing him off to bring him back to his senses.

"Don't let the animal in you take over," Eluna growled, glaring venomously at Ed. "Otherwise, you'll regret it later. Now change back, and let's go."

Reverting back to his human shape, Ed stood, still bewildered by what had happened, until Eluna eventually came over and gave him a slap on the cheek, jerking his mind back to reality.

"Come on, we have to get moving," Eluna growled, probably still irritable about what Ed had just tried to do.

"And go where?" Ed snapped back, recovering from his self disgust. "It's not like you have a home to go back to."

"We can't stay here, can we?" sighed Eluna, shaking her head at him. "They might start burning the woods down to get at us."

"That reminds me," Ed responded, after a pause. "I promised Al I'd be visiting him sometime soon. Al's my brother, you see."

"If you're thinking about going by train, that's not an option, in case you haven't noticed." Eluna shook her head. "The military's probably going to be monitoring the trains in case we try to leave."

"Who said anything about a train?" Ed smirked as he said this, and Eluna gave him a suspicious look.

"If you think I'm going to fly you there, you're out of your mind," she growled, crossing her arms and glaring at him.

"Well, you could always take me as a horse," he offered. "They're the only two options we have anyways, so take your pick."

Knowing that he was right, Eluna rolled her eyes, turning away as she contemplated the options. "I suppose the horse would be better, as it would be less noticeable."

"How long do you think it'll take?"

"I don't even know where we're going," Eluna huffed, glaring at him over her shoulder. "You're going to be giving me directions."

"Well, we're headed that way," Ed said, pointing. "But I have no idea how long it's going to take to get there. On a train, it takes about three hours from the station."

"We'd better allow for six hours travel, then." Eluna turned to look at him. "How much more daylight do you think there is?"

"Well, I think it's still morning," Ed pondered, glancing up to check the sun's position.

"Alright, let's go." With a final sigh of distaste, Eluna went through the painful process of changing, ending up this time with the body of a horse. Though it took a few tries, Ed finally managed to get on her, with the help of a rock. He'd never been on a horse before, actually, and he had a feeling that he wasn't going to like it. Still, he reminded himself, it was the only way they were going to get to Risembool, where Al had been staying with Winry while Ed had gone into Central. Sadly, that didn't make it any easier.

By the time they'd reached Risembool(which Eluna had managed to make in five and a half hours), Ed had lost tack of how many times he'd fallen off. His thighs ached. And damn, it hurt to ride bareback. Eluna's spine was like a spike! Ed was grateful when he was able to dismount her properly, not crashing to the ground and eating dirt. They'd chosen to stop a good ways from the actual house, so as to not make Eluna seem unusual. It would have been awkward to explain why Ed had come on horseback, and then have that horse turn into a woman. They walked along the road(Ed tried to, anyways. His legs were still sore), not saying anything. Al was training out in the front yard of the wonderful home, and smiled, waving as they came. Well, he waved at Ed, anyways, just giving Eluna a confused look. Den was out with him, and started barking, first with happiness, and then with hostility, probably aimed at Eluna.

"Easy boy, easy," Ed laughed, patting the old dog's head reassuringly, Eluna staying well away. Al came up to them, obviously overjoyed at his brother's return.

"What happened in Central?" Al questioned, and Ed merely shrugged in response.

"Nothing, really," he said, then motioned to the newcomer. "This is Eluna, by the way. I met her on the train over here."

"Pleased to meet you!" Al said, holding a hand out, which Eluna shook hesitantly. "She seems kind of shy, Ed. But she's pretty."

"Oh, thank you," Eluna said softly, giving the faintest of smiles. "It's a nice home you have here."

"Well, by what you tell me, yours is supposed to be better," Ed chuckled, nudging her with his elbow. "Oh, I need to introduce you to Winry, too. Where is she, Al?"

"Uhm, well..." Al looked suddenly sheepish. "She's kind of mad that you left without telling her, so--"

"ED!" another blonde woman screamed from the second floor of the home, a wrench hurtling at them. Well, more specifically, at Ed.

With a confirming crack, the wrench connected with his skull, sending the short boy to the ground. Al winced, and Den fled the area in case more airborne tools came raining down upon them. Ed sat up slowly, rubbing his aching head.

"How many times have I told you to not just straight up and leave!?" Winry screamed at him as she approached the wounded boy, glaring daggers at him, ignoring Eluna for the moment. "You are so clueless sometimes, I swear!" She blinked, paused, and then turned to Eluna. "And who're you supposed to be!? His girlfriend?!"

"I would have figured you were his," she responded in a dull tone. "You worry about him enough."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Winry shrieked, chucking a wrench at Eluna this time.

With lightning reflexes, her hand snapped out and grabbed the wrench mid-air, just inches from her face. The others(besides Ed, who was still groaning in pain on the ground), stared in disbelief. Shrugging, she tossed it back to Winry, giving the other girl a cold look.

"Try that again and you'll be the one with a wrench in your face," she growled threateningly, and Winry hastily shoved her weapon away into her pocket, adopting a much friendlier personality.

"S-so, uhm, what's your name?" Winry asked, smiling her sweetest smile.

"She's Eluna," Al said, helping Ed to his feet. "Ed met her on the train ride here. I guess they're... friends?"

"You could say that," Ed muttered, still in pain from Winry's wrench treatment. "But what's Pinako got cooking for dinner, I wonder?" "Ed, how can you be so small but have such a big appetite?" Winry chided him, ruffling his bangs.

"YOU WANNA CALL ME SMALL AGAIN!? I DARE YA!" Ed yowled, looking like he was about to punch Winry.

"Yeah, you're small," Winry snickered, succeeding in irritating Ed even more.

"Brother! Don't hit a girl!" Al cried, worried about Ed's deadly look. "Even Winry!"

"Quiet!" Eluna snapped, and the others turned to her, following her uneasy gaze down the road. "I think they've found us already."

"What?" Al demanded. "Ed, what have you gotten yourself into this time!"

"No time to explain now, Al! How are we running this time, Eluna?" Ed asked, grabbing the woman's shoulder.

"We're not running this time," she responded, looking over her shoulder at Al. "If he's coming, he better not be afraid of heights."

"He's coming, but hurry up! I think I can see them already! Al, don't ask, just do as we say! Winry, get in with Pinako and hide in the basement!" Ed looked at her, and shoved Winry towards the door. "Now!"

Hesitating for a moment longer, Winry rushed inside to convey the news to her grandmother. Ed turned back to Eluna, who had already taken on her familiar draconic shape of an elongated, white-scaled body, with a mane of blue running down her spine and ending in a feathery tail. She stood on rather stumpy legs, and had a large, dog-like skull with whiskers hanging from her muzzle. Al stared in wonder, and Ed hastened him onto her back, just before the dragon's fore claws.

In a flash, they shot up into the air, just as Roy sent an explosion their way, only just managing to avoid being caught in the blast. The ride was hardly smooth for the two passengers, but they clung onto the undulating body for dear life, following with the sharp dips and turns as Eluna avoided the wide range of weapons that the military threw at them. Spikes of earth whizzed past them, the dragon only barely managing to twist away from them. At one point, a spike grazed her side dangerously close to their legs, bringing up blood, but she pushed on, up into the cloud cover.

The water in the clouds soaked her riders to the bone, but she had no choice, depending on them to keep them hidden from certain death. She sliced cleanly through the fog, whipping quickly through them, but apparently someone knew how to control winds down below. Their cover whisked away, and another open fire was issued upon them, anywhere from guns to Roy's explosions to more earth spikes. The last of that list was probably most dangerous, but the occasional burst of fire near them was never comforting, either.

In a moment of quick thinking, Eluna dove down suddenly, to mere inches above the ground. Changing forms in mid-air was risky, but somehow she managed, becoming a horse, and tearing across the earth instead. But, there was one thing she hadn't counted on, and it was that the military had very quick vehicles, aside from the obvious tanks and armored trucks. They roared up on either side of the galloping mare, but none used bullets by this time. Now, they used alchemy-made ropes to try and lasso her in, because, after all, a live subject was much better than a dead one. Unfortunately, they were going to have a good hard time with it, Eluna being quick and instinctual. Walls of earth rose up before her, but she dodged them quickly, her hooves working insanely to keep balance.

Suddenly, a slight drop began before them, leading down to a river that ran through the fields. Eluna knew what she had to do, and she didn't wait for conformation from her still-clinging cargo. Jerking to one side of the small bridge than spanned the gap, she dove down into the water. Al and Ed gave a yell as they hit the cold, getting sucked into a surprisingly strong current. Pried from her back, they were separated entirely on the roar down the river, out into even less settled ground. Eluna disappeared from both Al and Ed's view, but if she'd just gone too far ahead or had drowned, they didn't know.

Eventually, the current slackened off, and they could see Eluna washed up on the bank in terrible shape, even as a horse. Swimming over to her, they crawled out of the water, gasping for air after such a hard chase, even though, really, they hadn't done a thing. Ed nudged Eluna's shoulder, and she creaked an eye open, groaning slightly, making Ed laugh.

"Good to see you're still with us," he joked, patting her soaking neck slightly.

"Brother..." Al gasped, staring at Ed and the horse in disbelief. "What just happened?"

"Well, it's kind of a long story," Ed said, grinning sheepishly as Eluna returned to her natural state.

"We've got time," Al responded, giving Ed a firm look. "Tell me everything."

It did take some time, but eventually, Al gathered all the information Ed had gotten from Eluna and was able to understand it. Still, he seemed suddenly unsure about Eluna's reliability, but Ed assured him that she was really quite fine. Eluna never said anything about it herself, still exhausted from their crazy run down to where they were now.

"So what do we do now?" Ed wondered aloud, looking out at the river they'd traveled down.

"Well, we should go look for the remains of Eluna's home town," Al said, as though it were obvious.

"What's that going to help us with?" Ed snapped, untying his golden braid, which hung to about chest length. His bangs framed his face, sometimes falling over his eyes.

"We might be able to gather more information there, if there are any remaining records of anything." Al turned his head to look at Eluna as she sat up. "What do you think?"

"I suppose," she muttered, moving over to Ed, who was struggling with his wet hair, fixing it for him. "I'm not sure how much information would be left, but there's no harm in looking."

"I can't think of anything else we can do," Ed mumbled, letting Eluna bat away his hands and work the tangles out of his hair. "Do you know where it is?"

"Generally." She took the hair tie, wrung out his hair, and then began to braid it. "I haven't been to it since I left the first time, though, so I don't know what shape it could be in."

"We'll just have to find out when we get there!" Al said, with an optimistic tone. "Uhm... how will we be getting there, though? You don't seem to be in any shape to be taking us anywhere."

"Oh, I'll manage," Eluna assured him, finishing up Ed's loose braid. "It's just up to you whether you want to go by air or by ground."

At this, Ed and Al looked at each other. They didn't like either prospect. Truly, they never liked heights, and riding on a horse made them sore afterward. Their thighs were still recuperating from that last ride before the dive into the river, and their stomachs were still queasy from the flight before it.

"We'll take the horse," Ed muttered, since there was less chance of dieing if they fell off. "But we should rest a little while before we leave."

"I've got no objections," Eluna responded, collapsing back onto the bank, sighing heavily. "I ache all over, and I think that they managed to get me. Probably one of those accursed spikes they kept throwing at us."

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Al sounded worried, and he had good reason to be: a small bit of blood was showing through Eluna's cloak on her shoulder.

"Oh, it's not terrible, I assure you," she said softly, closing her eyes. "Do you think there's time for a nap?"

Ed laughed out loud at that. "I was thinking the same thing! Riding a horse is no walk in the park!"

"At least you weren't the one being ridden on," Eluna retorted, creaking an eye open. "You guys are heavy, you know."

Ed and Al laughed before they settled down for some rest, all of them preparing for the journey that would come once they roused themselves.

* * *

Ooh, like, action. I couldn't think of anything else for Ed to be, just so you know, so I just said "Eh, wolf. Whatever." I didn't want to make him a cat... Mreh. 


	3. Findings

A shorter chapter this time... Oh well.

* * *

After days of travel, sometimes over terrain that wasn't so pleasant, the white mare and her passengers(who were slouching over her neck and each other's backs) finally arrived at the small, abandoned village. At least, what was left of it. Half of the homes on one side had been blown away to bits, leaving nothing but a pile of debris. They traveled down what seemed to have once been a main street, Ed and Al suddenly perking up to look around. A few stores passed by, anywhere from a butcher to a general market. It seemed to actually be a very decent, and normal place to live. Except for an unusually large building at the end of the street, with a gold, but rusting sign over it that read "Library."

When they reached it, Eluna stopped and her two charges hopped off, still staring in wonder at the building that stood before them. Eluna was the first to go up to the doors, kicking them in without so much as a thought, and then motioning to the other two, who followed along behind her, seeming to be almost in a trance. What greeted them inside were shelves upon shelves of books, going up to a three-story ceiling. Ladders went along each shelf, providing easy access to even the highest books. Ed and Al began their search immediately.

They spent hours immersed in the wealth of knowledge the library provided, and that was only in searching for the desired books. Deciding to search first on the art of "shape-shifting", as Eluna called it, they made quite an impressive pile by the end of it. Sliding easily down the ladder, Ed dropped the last book onto the enormous stack, exchanging pleased looks with his brother.

"What are you two trying to do, anyways?" Eluna asked, blinking at them curiously. "I don't see an obvious reason for you to have wanted to come here in the first place."

"We need to find a solid explanation about your shape changing," Ed explained to her, sitting down as he and Al began pulling random books out and flipping through them. "We might be able to convince them to settle for these instead of having to take you."

Eluna paused at this, not quite understanding. "Why would you care what happens to me? You hardly even know who I am."

"We don't like to have to see people suffer needlessly." Al looked up from the book as he said this, giving her a small smile. "Especially not someone like you. You're just a bit different. We all are."

Blinking slightly, Eluna glanced downward, sighing softly. "You're very kind, both of you. But, I can't think of a way I could repay you."

"We don't need repayment," Ed said quickly, closing one book and setting it aside, before grabbing another one. "We do the good for the people."

Again, Eluna paused before responding. "I can't help but think that there must be some personal gain you two are getting from this." Not waiting for an answer, she stood up and headed for the door. "I'll be waiting outside when you're done. It's a bit too musty in here." Ed and Al waved as she left, still engrossed in their research.

Many more hours passed, and the Elrics had finally managed to sort out their desired books. The mountain had been reduced to an armful, and they walked out into the fresh air, pleased with themselves. However, Eluna was no where in sight, so they walked down the main street, keeping an eye out for her. She actually hadn't wandered all that far, staring blankly at a pile of rubble that had once been a house. They figured that it had probably been hers, but they said nothing of it. Going up to her, Ed put a hand on her shoulder, making her glance around to him, blinking hazily.

"We got what we came for," Ed told her in a quiet voice. "Now we just have to confront the military about it."

Nodding in silence, Eluna changed herself to a horse once more, waiting patiently for the two of them to get on. The wound on her shoulder had already begun to heal, and no longer caused her pain. Once her passengers were mounted, she turned, and they began heading back off towards Central.

* * *

H'okay, here's how it's goin' to go. I'm not sure which Elric is going to start taking interest in Eluna, if either of them do. If you guys(the readers) want her to get into a relationship with either of them, tell me so in your review. If you want her to go with neither of them, or maybe even end up with someone else, then you can choose that too. If I get no reviews, she gets no one. Mmkay? Mmkay. 


	4. Captured

Mm, short chapters. It's writers block, I tell you! Oh well. At least I got something down.

* * *

"Okay, that should do for you." The Elrics stepped back from their creation, looking pleased with themselves.

No longer was there a blonde, blue-eyed girl standing before them. Instead, she had mouse-brown hair, and amber eyes. To further ensure her secrecy, they'd thrown a large coat onto her, and drawn the hood up. If they hadn't known who she was, they'd never have guessed it was really Eluna under there.

"Won't they be suspicious about me following you around?" she questioned, unsure about their plan. "They're sure to suspect something."

"Naaah," Ed said, grinning. "Colonel air head's just that. Not a bit of sense in him!"

"It would seem a bit strange, brother," Al said hesitantly. "The Colonel's not the only we've got to watch out for."

"It'll be fine! She just has to be quiet, not act suspiciously, and we're in! Then all we've got to do is hand the books over, and she's free as a bird." Ed was gleaming with sureness.

"You helped someone who's a criminal in their eyes," Eluna growled. "I don't think they're just going to let you go for that."

"It's not like we've got any other choice," Ed sighed, shaking his head, before heading out of the alley, the other two following him. "If they take the books instead of you, it won't matter anyways. It should satisfy them."

"And if it doesn't?" Eluna continued to pester him with her doubts.

"If it doesn't, we'll have to find some other way to get them to let you go free." Even Ed sounded unsure at this thought, but they tried not to think about that now.

As they made their way towards Headquarters, people gave them odd looks. Apparently, a notice had been sent out around the city about them, but what it could have been, none of them were sure. All that mattered at the moment was to get the books to the military, and try to convince them to stop pursuing Eluna. Al clutched the package closer.

Ed looked to Eluna just as they reached the steps, and nodded. Without a word, she broke off from them, going into a crowd nearby, and doing her best to blend into them. Then, the Elrics headed inside, trying to seem as casual as possible. Deciding that it would be smarter to check with Roy first before heading to see the Fuhrer, they hurried down the halls, finding the place surprisingly empty.

Knocking quickly on the door before entering, Ed found himself immediately at gun-point. Riza was staring as him from the other end, and Roy's voice sounded from his desk.

"I was wondering when you'd be returning, Fullmetal," he said in his usual, casual tone, standing up and moving over to them both. "And it seems you're in good health, Alphonse."

"Mustang, what's going on?" Ed asked hesitantly, giving Al a discreet signal to keep behind him.

"You've betrayed the military by helping a wanted person escape,' Mustang explained. "You are hereby stripped of your title and rank, and are now under custody."

"You can't do that!" Ed snarled, looking like he was about to punch someone. Riza clicked the gun warningly, and he back down.  
"P-please, sir," Al stuttered. "Just let us explain. We've found something about her."

"Oh?" Mustang questioned, tilting his head and looking at the younger of the two. "Show me, then."

Al offered up their chosen books, Mustang taking them and flipping quickly through one. "Hmm." The Colonel closed the book, sighing softly. "This may have made a difference a few days ago, but now it is near worthless."

"Worthless!?" Ed yelled, Riza having to give him another warning to keep him in line. "How could you call that worthless!? It's all the information you could get on her if you actually did the tests!"

"The Fuhrer decided that someone with those kinds of abilities is too dangerous to allow free," Mustang said gently. "We have no choice but to obey the orders. We have no choice but to take both you, and her, as prisoners."

"You haven't even found her yet." Ed grinned when he said this. "You have no clue where she is."

"Wanna bet?" The Colonel's tone made Ed's face fall. Behind him, there came a knock on the door.

When it was opened, Ed and Al froze. Havoc and Fuery had Eluna held at gun-point, her disguise removed. Boy, did she look angry, growling at her captors viciously. If it hadn't been for the gun, she'd have ripped them apart long before. Roy sighed from behind them.

"I posted them in vantage points in the city, watching for you. Their orders were to capture any suspicious persons who were following you," he explained. "There's nothing we can do now but have you both jailed. The girl will have to be more thoroughly secured, of course."

"Don't do this, Colonel!" Al pleaded. "She didn't mean to do anything wrong, and brother only did what he thought was right!"

"There's nothing we can do, kid," Roy said, turning away. He gave Fuery and Havoc a small wave, and they dragged Eluna from the room. "Riza will take you to your cell, Ed."

Edward was hardly paying attention. When Riza gave him a shove, he left the room without complaint. He was too preoccupied by what has just happened. It wasn't what Roy had told him. It wasn't that he was a prisoner now. It was the look of distrust that Eluna had given him just before she'd been forced from the room. Behind him, he could still hear Al begging the Colonel, but their voices were lost as Riza slammed the door, and he was led down the hall.

* * *

Bad place to cut off, I know, but it's all for the better of the story! Honest! 


	5. Why?

The ending of this chapter almost made me cry. Maybe because I'd been reading some depressing manga(I'm not telling which!) and listening to sad music. Eh.

* * *

The cell was cold and dark, and Ed hated it. He'd been in this sort of situation before, but that didn't make the trapped feeling go away. He wondered how Eluna was doing, and what the military must have been doing to her. Running tests? Straining her abilities? Or just letting her rot away in her secured cell, never to see the light of day again? He preferred not to think of the last one.

Ed was half-dozing when a voice outside jolted him up. Whoever it was, they sounded pretty angry.

"What idiot forgot to lock her cuffs?!" the voice yelled just outside his door. "So now she's running around and we don't even know where she is!?"

"That's what appears to have happened," a much more calm voice said. Then a sigh. "Just keep a look out. She'll probably be coming down this way to find that Fullmetal kid."

"What if she tries to eat us?" a third voice asked, absolutely terrified. "She can turn into a giant beast, can't she!?"

"Don't be such a baby," growled the angriest of the voices, and Ed heard a smacking sound. "If she tries to eat you, shoot her."

With a soft whimper, the chatter died down, and a face peered in through the small window in the door, before disappearing again. The moment the guard had gone, somebody clapped a hand over Ed's mouth, and he gave a short, muffled cry.

"Quiet," Eluna's harsh voice whispered into his ear. "If they catch me in here, we're both done for."

"How the hell did you get in here?" Ed whispered back, when the hand was removed.

In response, Eluna pointed at a hole in the floor, which had obviously been alchemized. He wondered how he hadn't noticed it being created, but he decided not to question Eluna's methods. He was just glad that she was here. The board that had been securing his hands were crumbled off by Eluna's silent alchemy, and they hurried down into the hole.

It took an hour of crawling through the dirt before they emerged into open air. It was quite dark, and Ed was surprised at how late it had become. His cell hadn't had windows, so he hadn't been able to gauge any passage in time. They were a good few miles out of Central, and as Eluna stood from sealing the hole in again, Ed noticed a collar on her neck.

"What's that for?" he questioned, touching it to show what he was asking about. Eluna twitched slightly, and he realized that it was incredibly tight.

"That's too keep me from changing," she muttered, sighing softly. "At least into any larger forms. I still have the wolf, which was how I managed to sneak out here so I could go back through the underground and get you out, too."

"Why not just take it off, then?" It was so obvious to him, but he knew that there was probably something about it to keep anyone from doing so. He was correct.

"I can't," she responded. "It's too tight to take off manually, and if I try to use alchemy, nothing happens to it. I've never seen a material like it before... If I try to change into a larger form, I'll only choke myself to death. It's that strong."

Ed paused for a while. "Something tells me that they've been looking for a way to handle you for a while now," he said. "If they managed to create a whole new compound just for keeping you under control, there must have been a lot of forethought in this. Unless..." he hesitated at admitting his belief, "they want to use you."

"I wouldn't put it past them." She glanced around as she said this. "But we shouldn't be thinking about that right now," turning to him, she gave him a tense look. "Where are we going to go?"

"On the run," was Ed's simple response, and Eluna gave him a confused look. "What else can we do?"

Sighing, Eluna quietly shifted to her wolfish form, Ed doing the same. It was still uncomfortable for him, but he began to trot along ahead, Eluna following behind. He didn't know where they were going to go, but he knew that they had to get away from Central. They traveled till the sun rose, and by then, they couldn't even see Central anymore. Actually, they couldn't see any sign of civilization. There was only open grassland stretched out before them for miles around. That was where they finally decided to stop and rest. Ed's legs and paws were sore from all the walking, and he was tired after the sleepless night. Eluna seemed much less affected.

"What are we going to do if they find us?" Eluna asked quietly, sitting down and turning her head to the sky. "I can't run as quickly in this form as my others."

"We'll find a way," he huffed from the ground. "Don't worry. They won't get us."

Eluna didn't respond to this. She dropped her head downward again, now only staring blankly at the ground. Ed's intentions still weren't clear to her, and she didn't entirely trust him. Why would he even be thinking about keeping someone like her safe? It bewildered her. Then again, she'd never really known how it felt to be treated like that. Her parents had left her rather early in life, so she'd never had the chance to know anything about it. And then, of course, the military had come and forced her from her town... forced her to destroy it... She shook her mind of those thoughts.

"Eluna," Ed said, after a long stretch of silence, "what happened that day... when the military came?"

Looking up silently from the ground, the white wolf stared at the golden one with pained eyes, before looking away. "Everything was just... gone." Her lower jaw quivered slightly. "It hurt so badly... it hurt all over... but... I didn't feel anything at all."

Ed stared back at her, wondering what she meant. He said nothing, only watched her start to shake all over, drop her head again, and fall silent. What had she been through? Could it have been worse than his own ordeals? It definitely seemed like it. Yet, he did nothing for her. Only sat and watched her as she stood there in agony, and it made him wonder, Why?

An hour later, they set off on their journey again to wherever they were heading. Eluna became even more silent than she had been before, following Ed without question. It made him feel guilty, and again, it made him ask himself... Why?

* * *

Is it just me, or is this turning into an EdXOc fic? Review if you want it to change! 


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